Selma Probate Attorney

Generally no. Until the court appoints an executor or administrator, no one has the legal authority to pass clear title, so a Selma home cannot close before probate opens. But you are not stuck waiting: you can put the house under contract right away, and that signed contract becomes real leverage with the mortgage company.

Here is how we move a Selma sale forward:

• Get multiple offers within 24 hours and go under contract as-is, then show that contract to the mortgage servicer.
• Once the court issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, usually within a few weeks, an independent executor can sign the closing documents and sell, without waiting for the full estate to close.
• Cover the mortgage in the meantime: keep paying it (reimbursed from the sale proceeds at closing) or request a short forbearance, backed by the death certificate, the Letters, and the signed contract.
• At closing, the lender is paid its payoff first and the remaining equity flows to the estate.

The one thing not to do is go quiet on the lender. We coordinate the court, the lender, and the sale so nothing slips into default.

It depends on where your loved one legally lived, not where the property sits or what your mailing address says. Texas files probate in the county of the decedent's residence at death, under Estates Code section 33.001. Because Selma's city limits cross Bexar, Comal, and Guadalupe counties, two neighbors on the same street can belong to different courts. Tell us the home address and a little about the situation, and we will confirm the correct county and court, at no charge, before anything is filed.

No. We handle the large majority of these matters remotely, by phone, email, and video, and the courts hear many uncontested matters by Zoom. If you would rather meet in person, our office is nearby in Windcrest. Visits are by appointment only and we do not take walk-ins, so call first and we will set a time.